The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday issued a notice cautioning against the use of the malaria drugs hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine outside of hospitals and clinical trials, citing the drugs risk of causing abnormal heart rhythms and a dangerously rapid heart rate. Both drugs had previously been touted by President Donald Donald Trump as a “game changer” in the fight against COVID-19, spurring increased prescriptions of the drug and some reported shortages.
- Coronavirus: Health Canada issues warning on hydroxychloroquine, chloroquine use
- U.S. FDA warns against using malaria drug on COVID-19 patients outside hospitals